Summary
TheGundamfranchise is a long-time favorite of Otakus far and wide, delivering exhilarating mecha action and political dramawith visually stunning animationand fluidity. While most series under this franchise are often centered on a child prodigy with struggles, some of them break out of this shell by focusing onadult main characters.
Whether it’s a soldier fighting for peace or a revolutionary striving for a better world, theseGundamstories offer a deeper, more reflective perspective on the human condition. These anime explore concepts such as responsibilities and moral ambiguity that resonate with a mature audience, intriguing this demographic much more than the others.
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Producer
Bandai Visual
This series acts as the link between the originalGundamseries andZeta Gundam, and it does a fine job of it. It follows the story of the remnants of the defeated Principality of Zeon trying to rise from their downfall by stealing weapons that could lead to another war, and Kou Uraki, a rookie pilot is given the chance to recover the stolen items.
Withits action-filled battlesand a touch of romance,Stardust Memorydefinitely keeps fans entertained. It pushes the narrative that adults can also make mistakes, a nice switch-up for fans of theGundamfranchise who have digested a lot of the “child prodigy that steals the show” concept.
This seriestakes place in a future century, when Earth is uninhabitable and humans live in space colonies called Neo Nations. To prevent further disputes, they use the Gundam Fight tournament to determine who will rule over them all, sending representatives from each colony. Domon Kasshu happens to be one of them, and his mission comes with an ulterior motive involving the safety of the galaxy.
Mobile Fighter G Gundamcontains twist after twist, with an art style that stays true to the originalGundamseries. It might be one of the cheesiest anime out there, but that is what makes it good and a favorite forGundamfans.
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The sequel toMobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO: The One Year War,Mobile Suit Gundam MS IGLOO: Apocalypse 0079,continues with the same scope, with Oliver May and the 603 Technical Division creating a new weapon in each episode with a pilot to test it out.
Each episode tells a different story, with the addition of new characters and the exploration of backstories, with the most captivating being the seaman in episode one. While the other two are more action-oriented, the series in general still beautifully portrays the story from the perspective of Zeon, which fans of Zeon definitely enjoyed.
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One of the most somberGundamreleases,Mobile Suit Gundam SEED C.E. 73: STARGAZER, delivers an unexpected emotional impact for its viewers, especially considering that it branched off fromSEED Destiny. This ONA focuses on Sven, an Earth Alliance soldier, and Selene, a Coordinator researcher, as their distinct paths converge and throw them into chaos.
One of the darkest series in the franchise, this ONA contains a lot of brutal war scenesand tragic backstories, yet it still manages to captivate fans even with its grim outlook, topping it off with a satisfactory ending.
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Bandai Visual, Sotsu, Mainichi Broadcasting System
The definitive ending of theMobile Suit Gundam 00series,A Wakening Of The Trailblazeris one of the wildly exhilarating movies in the franchise. Now that the world is finally at peace, extraterrestrial threats come into play, and the Gundam Meisters do everything they can to save their world from impending doom.
It is a common belief that this is one of the most unhinged stories that the franchise has ever released, and yet, the directors somehow managed to make it work, exploring its themes properly while passing along a message hidden in all the chaos.
Mobile Suit Gundam: The 08th MS Teamfollows the story of Shiro Amada and Aina Sahalin, as the former helps the latter in an emergency and they fall in love with each other, only for fate to place them back as enemies on the battlefield. This story offers unique insights on soldiers who are commonly overlooked as cannon fodder, and what war does to them.
This series also realistically portrays thestruggles that come with war, such as its exhaustiveness and the constant maintenance required for weapons with the tendency to fail at the wrong times. Combined with proper character development and a captivating storyline, this series has enthralled many fans of theGundamfranchise and earned its place among its greatest entries.
Sotsu, Nozomi Entertainment, Atelier Musa
This movie covers the final chapter of the rivalry between Char Aznable and Amuro Ray in their early thirties and late twenties respectively. Char believes that humanity’s chance at true peace lies in space, and as such, decides to drop a giant asteroid on Earth and cause a nuclear winter, a plan only Amuro can stop, ending their rivalry once and for all.
The storytelling inChar’s Counterattackis exceedingly beautiful, with intense fight scenes and stunning animation that capture the attention of its fans. However, it is highly advised to watchMobile Suit GundamandMobile Suit Zeta Gundamfirst to gain full enjoyment of this masterpiece.
This is one of the shows in the franchise that does not clearly define the line between good and evil, as the operations of both sides tend to be morally gray. On one end is the Earth Federation, which is using a military approach to enforce peace. On the other is Mafty, an organization, headed by the 25-year-old Hathaway Noa, that wants to rid their world of corrupt leaders.
With jaw-dropping animation, amazing music,exceptional character development, and realistic storytelling in that no one is perfect and both sides have their flaws despite their ambitions,Mobile Suit Gundam Hathawaystands out as a great example of the best of the franchise.
Despite theGundamFranchise trying to portray that “war is hell,” it usually gets overshadowed by the cool mecha fights that entice fans, but notThunderbolt. Even with its fair share of action,Thunderboltdoes not lose sight of this theme, truly capturing the horror that comes with combat.
It focuses on Io Fleming and Daryl Lorenz, both in their early 20s and aces of their forces, as they battle each other in the Thunderbolt Sector. From visually stunning animation to beautiful sounds that go as far as portraying their main characters' personalities, it is truly a rock solidGundamanime.
Years after the last release of anythingGundam, theGundamfranchise decided to take its fans on a nostalgic trip back to the good old days they loved and cherished byreleasing this beauty of a film in 2024. Despite such a simple plot,Mobile Suit Gundam SEED Freedomdoes its job and delivers what it was meant to.
Even fans of theMobile Suit Gundam SEEDseries believe this movie is the best of them by far, escaping some of the issues that they had with the other two. Despite this, it is advised to watch the other two movies before this one to provide maximum satisfaction, as a lot of references are made to past events.
